CIRCUMCISION AND FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM)
MALE CIRCUMCISION
If the procedure is carried out correctly, by a medical
professional under sterile conditions in a hospital, male
circumcision can be healthy option as bacteria and fungi that
reside under the foreskin are reduced. However, it is not a
necessary procedure and complications can be bleeding, which is
particularly dangerous for babies, pain, damage to the penis and
loss of the top of the penis.
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM)
Female ‘circumcision’, on the other hand, is the very painful
mutilation of the female clitoris and external genitalia which
is one of the most highly sensitive parts of the body. It should
be never be allowed because it will stop the female from ever
being able to experience the pleasure of an orgasm. It is
carried out on infants and young girls to preserve virginity
until marriage and then to keep the her entirely under her
future husband’s control. Victims are usually aged between four
and ten, but some are babies.
Female genital mutilation is a form of child abuse common to
some African, Asian and Middle Eastern cultures and takes place
all over the world. Carried out in secret and often without
anaesthetic it involves the partial or total removal of the
external female genital organs. The practice is usually carried
out using basic tools such as knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces
of glass and razor blades
This illegal and life-threatening initiation ritual can leave
young victims in agony and can lead to serious bleeding,
problems urinating, infections, infertility and increased risk
of newborn deaths in childbirth later on. There is absolutely no
health benefit in removing the female clitoris and it is akin to
removing the entire penis of a male.
The debilitating impact of female genital mutilation will have
both physical and psychological effects that are irreversible
and will last the child their entire lifetime. It
has now become a serious criminal offence and prosecutions are
taking place with UK Nationals and British Citizens now looking
at 14 years in prison for promoting or practising it either in
the UK or anywhere abroad including countries where it is still
legal.
